Winter Trip - Leaving LA again! 3-5 days!

Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum

Help Support Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

bruinFJRguy

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 29, 2016
Messages
207
Reaction score
83
Location
Los Angeles, CA
Hey guys. Leaving LA for another 3-5 days in late Dec or early Jan and tapping you all for tips again! (Thanks for the suggestions last time.)

I've now got the 2015 FJR and a 2005 V-Strom 1000 with brand new Metzeler Tourance tires, big steel boxes, skid plate and engine guards. I know the Strom isn't really a true adventure bike, but it's probably better suited to some light dirt road riding than the FJR. I can take either bike. Camping is probably the goal.

The upshot: I'm game for anywhere not too far. Here the options I think I have, but I need some guidance re: weather for the time of year, best routes, etc.

1) I can just ride the SoCal roads, between here and the border, the inland areas of Orange and San Diego counties, 74, 79, Sunrise Hwy, basically all the Butler mapped roads between LA and Mexico.

2) Baja. Not sure where to go that doesn't require a true dual sport or involve hours of straight line droning on a highway. Is there a Butler for Baja? I can search this I guess. I'd kind of like to take the Strom down whatever side of the Baja peninsula is best, ending in La Paz or Cabo. Beach camping would be cool (if safe). I'd like to maybe do some dirt roads, but I'm not an experienced off-roader and am going solo; I don't want to dump and break the strom, but I'm less concerned about it than the FJR.

3) A loop up in Nor Cal along the coast then dipping into Oregon, hitting all the windy roads between the coast and the 5 on my way back down to the North Bay area. Klamath National Forest, Six Rivers Nat'l Forest, Shasta-Trinity Nat'l Forest. Followed by slabbing it back to So Cal. Again, I'd like to camp. Is it wet up there this time of year? Will I freeze if I try to camp?

4) Anywhere in Arizona/New Mex. I think the prettier parts with fun riding might be snowy, though. I've not yet researched maps or routes; just throwing it out there.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

 
Last edited by a moderator:
#3 January may not be the most ideal month for riding up north however if not raining it is very doable. Watch out for frost/ice in the shaded parts of the forest roads. And yes you will freeze camping. :)

 
Last week was great. This week in NM is freezing balls. We're south, but all the fun roads are at 5k feet or higher. If you're schedule is flexible, take a really good look at the weather forecasts before you leave. Especially if you come here or Colorado.

 
I got some suggestions on advrider about hanging out in the north and paved parts of Baja. I might do that.

Other than that it looks like staying local to SoCal roads might be the way to go. A multi-state adventure might have to wait for spring.

Death Valley is am option, but, again, I think a lot of that will be pretty chilly.

 
Top